Tool for operating vehicle wheel-rims.



R. W. FUNK. TOOL FOR OPERATING VEHICLE WHEEL RIMS. APPLICATION FILEDJAN. 15, 1912.

1,146,421 Patented July 13, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I. E:

WITNESSES l/V V5 N TOR ATTORNEY COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH c0.. WASHINGTON n LR. w. FUNK. TOOL FOR OPERATING VEHICLE WHEEL RIMS.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. I5. 1912.

1,146,421 Patented July 13, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

WITNESSES [AWE/W0]? RICHARD w. FUNK, or WEEI-IAWKEN, N

EW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO B. W. FUNK,

INCORPORATED, 013 NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

TOOL FOR OPERATING VEHICLE WHEEL-RIMS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 13, 1915.

Application filed January 15, 1912. Serial No. 671,169.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, RICHARD W. FUNK, a citizen of the United States,residing in the city of I Veehawken, county of Hudson, and State of NewJersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Tools forOperating Vehicle Wheel-Rims, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a device for elfecting the collapse andsubsequent re-alinement of a tire-carrying rim of a form commonly usedfor automobile service and the like, in which the resilient tire iscarried upon a transversely split rim which is detachably secured to thefelly of the Wheel.

My improved device comprises a tool having members which engage the rimon either side of the split therein. The movement through acomparatively small arc of a lever forming part of the mechanism actsfirst to displace the abutting ends of the rim along the line ofcleavage, then by its further movement to cause the ends of the rim toslide past one another and thereby contract the diameter of the rim,permitting the tire mounted thereon to be readily removed.

The tool is so proportioned and designed that the first movement of thelever pro duces a resultant force which acts along the line of cleavage.This resultant force automatically changes in direction so as to causethe rim ends to slide past each other once they are in position to movein that direc tion, and when finally the rim reaches the collapsedcondition the resultant force tends through its action upon the tool tohold the rim in its collapsed state without the application of externalforce. I

My improved device is therefore highly efficient in operation,quick-acting and selflocking. It has the further advantage of beingsimple and readily attached to any existing rim of the type indicated.

In the accompanying drawings which form a part of this specification,Figure 1 is a side elevation of a portion ofa tire-carrying rim and tirewith the tool attached; Fig. 2 is a view on line 11-11 of Fig. 1; Fig. 3is a fragmentary top view of an improved type of rim with which thistool is most adapted to be used; Fig. 4: is a transverse sectional viewon line IV-IV of Fig. 2; Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic view similar to Fig. 4showing successive positions of the mechanism in the course of itsoperation; Fig. 6 is a transverse sectional view 011 line VI-VI of Fig.1.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, the numeral 1 designates adetachable vehicle wheel rim transversely split at 2 on a line which ispreferably inclined at a small angle to a radius, from eight to tendegrees having been found in practice a satisfactory angular deviation.Mounted upon the rim in any convenient and usual manner is a resilienttire 3. The adjacent ends of the rim are shown connected by links 4pivoted at 5 and 6, respectively, to straps 7 and 8 riveted or otherwisesecured to the inner periphery of the rim. One end of the rim adjacentto the split therein preferably has the clench tapered at 9 and 10, asshown in Fig. 3. This taper lies on the side of the rim which is adaptedto be first drawn radially inward, and its purpose will later beindicated.

The tool comprises a multiple part yoke member formed of two gripsections or clips 11 and 12 curved to conform to the outer surface ofthe clench of the rim and having the inwardly projecting pins 13 whichenter holes 14 in the opposite clenches of the rim.

The member 12 is secured to a shaft 15, to

barrel 2 1 rotatably mounted on a shaft 22,

to one end of which is secured a clip 23,

which has formed at the other end a curved portion 24 adapted to embracethe outside of the clench 'of the tire-carrying rim and from whichextends a pin or stud 25 adapted to enter a socket 26 in the clench ofthe rim. Detachably carried on the projecting end 27 of the shaft 22 isa similar clip 28 having the curved portion 29 and the inwardlyextending pin 30 entering a socket 31 in the rim. Means for detachablysecuring the clips in place comprise a bolt'32having a head 33 engagingthe clip 23 and a wing nut 34 engaging the clip 28. The other extremityof the member 19 is formed into an circumfere'ntially alined.

operating handle 35. The pins on one yoke member are preferably made ofdifierent diameter from the pins on the other yoke member, andthesockets for their reception are made of corresponding size in orderto prevent the application of the tool to the rim in its reversedposition. The requirement for its successful operation is obviously thatthe link 18 shall occupy the relative position to the inclined split inthe rim shown in the drawings.

In order to apply the tool to the rim or detach it therefrom, it is onlynecessary to loosen the two wing nuts sufliciently to permit the pins orstuds on the yoke members to slip over the curved clenches of thetirerim and into or free from their respective sockets. In applying thetool, the wing nuts are then tightened and the rim thereby clampedfirmly by the yokes on either side of the split.

Vith the tool in place in the position shown in Fig. 1, the detaching ofthe rim from the tire is accomplished by moving the handle of the toolin the direction indicated by the arrow until the parts assume therelative positions shown in Fig. 1-, finally resulting in the ends ofthe rim overlapping for a considerable distance, and thereby contractingthe diameter of the rim so that the tire, even though it be providedwith inextensible beads for engagement with. the clenches, may readilyhe slipped free frointhe rim.

The diagram in Fig. 5 indicates three successive positions of the partsfrom the start to the finish of the operation of collapsing the rim. Thedotted lines indicate the parts when the ends of the rim arecircumferentially alined. The full lines show the position when the rimis fully collapsed, while the heavy broken line indicates the line ofcenters of the different parts in an intermediate position. The mode ofoperation can best be seen from an inspection of this diagram.

It will be noted that when force is first applied to the handle of thetool in an effort to cause the collapse of the rim, the section of therim at the right of the split, as seen in the diagram, will be urged ina direction along the center line of the link 18. There are otherconditions, however, which govern the actual movement of this part ofthe rim. Considering that the adjacent section remains stationary at thestart, as it does to all practical purposes, a

portion of the right-hand section of the rim adjacent to the split mustswing about the pivot6 as a center. The first movement of the handle ofthe tool moreover results in the immediate creation of an opposing forceor reaction due to the fact that the rim is highly elastic and the endstend to remain There results from the two forces thus caused to act uponthe rim and the reaction furnished by the link connecting the ends ofthe rim, a force acting substantially parallel to the plane of the splitin the rim. The righthand end of the rim, as seen in Figs. 4 and 5, isthus urged in a direction substantially parallel to this plane withoutany considerable friction between the abutting ends of the rim, whichotherwise would cause wear and destructive action upon these parts. Thefarther the end of the rim is distorted toward the center of the wheel,the greater becomes the opposing force offered by the flexibility of therim itself to this distortion, but it does not increase rapidly untilthe top of the clench is in such a position that it is ready to clearthe inner periphery of the rim. When this condition exists theangularity of the'link 18 has so changed that the force offered by theoperation of the tool is no longer in its original line, but lessinclined to the periphery'of the rim at that point and therefore adaptedto cause the ends to overlap. The

parts are so proportioned that the tool is not directly parallel to therim because the apposing force offered by the resiliency of the rimstructure is twofold: first, a force tending to force the rim radiallyoutward into circumferential alinement; second, to cause the ends tomeet. The resultant of the forces acting on the rim is thussubstantially in line with the depressed section of the rim and actsdirectly to cause the ends of the rim to overlap until the parts finallyassume the position shgwn by the full lines in Fig. 5. When the'"t66l"assumes approximately the position shown by the heavy broken centerline of the diagram, the rim itself acts automatically to cause itscomplete collapse without further expenditure of effort on the part ofthe operator. At this juncture the force tending to cause the rim toassume a position in which the ends are together is considerably lessthan the force which acts solely to force the displaced section radiallyoutward. Since the handle of the tool has passed the dead center withrespect to an outward force communicated through the link 18, the toolis forcibly caused to assume the position of Fig. 4:, even though theends are thereby displaced still farther from one another. In thisposition the tool is self-locking and there is no tendency to cause there-alinement of the ends of the rim until considerable force is appliedto the handle in the direction on posed to the arrow in Fig. 1. v

WVhen one end of the rim first starts to slide past the other, the beadsof the tire, which are held under the clenches, are forced closertogether by'the action of the taper on the clenches of the rim adjoiningthe split. These tapered edges exert a wedging action upon the tire andgently but firmly cause the disengagement of the beads of the tire fromthe portion of the rim which is being displaced radially inward. Theaction at first is purely local, but more and more of the bead is disena ed as the rim section continues to move inward, and a considerableportion of the periphery is freed by the time the tool has reached itsultimate position. The remainder of the tire may then be readily removedfrom the rim, a new tire placed over the rim and alined therewith,whereupon the shifting of the tool to its initial position will cause areversal of the original operation, and the clenches will take hold ofthe beads of the tire without further effort on the part of theoperator. In ap plying a tire to the rim, it is to be noted that as soonas the tool passes the dead center the resiliency of the rim actsentirely to cause the re-alinement of its ends, and therefore aids theoperator in restoring the rim to its operative position, just as it haspreviously aided in holding the rim in its collapsed position.

Although it is possible to operate such a rim as I have describedwithout tapering the clenches on one side of the split in the rim,nevertheless, this is likely to result in cutting the fabric coveringthe beads of the tire, and I regard the tapering of the clenches as animportant and valuable adjunct in a rim used in connection with the tooldescribed.

While I have illustrated and described only one specific embodiment ofmy inven tion, I realize that it is capable of wide application, and Ido not desire to be limited to the precise structure shown except asrequired by the scope of the claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A tool of the class described having a pair of rim gripping members,a lever pivotally projecting from one of said members, and a linkpivotally connected to said lever and to the other of said members.

2. A tool for operating a transversely split tire-carrying rim havingmembers adapted to grip the rim on either side of the split therein, alink pivoted to one member, a second link pivoted to the other member,and pivotal connection between said links.

3. A tool for operating a transverselysplit tire-carrying rim havingmembers adapted to grip the rim on either side of the split therein, alink pivoted to one member, a second link pivoted to the other member,and pivotal connection between said links, the points at which the linksare pivoted to the said members being substantially oifset from thepoints at which the device is designed to grip the rim.

4. A tool for operating a transversely split tire-carrying rim havingmembers adapted to grip the rim on either side of the split therein, alink pivoted to one member, a second link pivoted to the other member,and pivotal connection between said links, the points at which the linksare pivoted to the said members being offset radially inward from thepoints at which the device is designed to grip the rim.

5. A tool for operating a transversely split tire-carrying rimcomprising two pairs of grip members, means for detachably clampingtogether each pair of grip members to grip a rim on either side of thesplit therein, a link pivotally connected to each pair of grip members,and pivotal connection between said links.

6. A tool for operating a transversely split tire-carrying rimcomprising two pairs of grip members, means for detachably clampingtogether each pair of grip members to embrace a section of the rim, aforked link pivotally connected to one pair of grip members, a secondlink pivotally connected to the other pair of grip members and pivotallyheld between the forks of said firstnamed link, and a handle upon theouter eX- tremity of said second link.

7 A tool of the class described, comprising a pair of clamping members,a lever fulcrumed at its one end to one of said clamping members and alink pivotally connected to said lever adjacent its fulcrumed end andalso engaged with the other of said clamping members.

8. A tool of the class described, comprising a pair of clamping memberseach comprising a pair of clamping jaws, bolts eX- tending through theupper portions of said jaws, means in connection with said bolts tosecure the jaws of each clamping member in position with respect to oneanother, a lever fulcrumed near one end on the bolt connecting the jawsof one of said clamping members, a linking member having pivotalconnection with the bolt on the other clamping member, said link alsohaving pivotal connection adjacent its opposite end with said lever at apoint adjacent is fulcrumed end.

RICHARD W. FUNK.

WVitnesses:

GERALD E. TERWILLIGER, OLIVER WILLIAMS.

Gopies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, I). 0.

